Friday, April 13, 2012

OPI's new Spider-Man collection was a bit of an unexpected surprise for me. A comic book themed collection?? For real? That's AWESOME. Okay, not exactly based on comic books, but it was created to coincide with the release of the new 3D Spiderman movie, The Amazing Spider-man, that's coming out in July, so close enough. Still Spiderman. The collection consists of six colors plus a new shade of OPI Shatter crackle topcoat that creates the look of Lizard's scales.

OPI Call Me Gwen-Ever. This is orange, but it's not the vibrant orange we've been seeing a lot this year. This one is lighter, more of a medium orange than a dark orange, less saturated, less clean, less bright. It's soft and muted, a little dirty even, and has a pink/coral tone instead of yellow undertones.

OPI Into The Night. This is a deep metallic blue with a very slight hint of indigo / purple tone to it. It's not a super dark vampy blue shimmer like OPI Yoga-Ta Get This Blue, it's actually rather light looking with a faded denim type of finish. It is a frost but it doesn't suffer from any weird formula or brushstroke issues like most frosts.

OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls. This is described as a "cityscape white" on the press release, but to me it looks grey. A very, very light grey, as light as you can go before it becomes pure white. The slight dirty/dingy look of it keeps it from being extremely white-out bright and chalky, but it is still pretty dense and bright on the nails.

OPI Number One Nemesis. A deep greenish-grey shimmer that's made up of lots of different colored particles. There's charcoal, gold, green, a silvery color, even a little hint of blue. In bright light it sparkles like a glass fleck. In dim light it looks speckled. I highly suspect that this is an exact match for Chanel Graphite, but since I've lost my bottle, I can't do a comparison. From memory, though, I want to say it's practically the same.

Sidenote: I can't even see the name Spiderman anymore without hearing Jenna Marbles' voice saying, "Bye, Spiderman!"

OPI Shatter Topcoat in Shatter The ScalesThe collection also includes this shatter topcoat to layer over any of the shades. It's a dark blue-toned green shimmer with silver foil microglitter.

OPI Shatter the Scales over Call Me Gwen-ever.

OPI Shatter the Scales over Into The Night.

OPI Shatter the Scales over Just Spotted the Lizard.

OPI Shatter the Scales over My Boyfriend Scales Walls.

OPI Shatter the Scales over Number One Nemesis.

OPI Shatter the Scales over Your Web Or Mine?

Unfortunately, I can't compare Number One Nemesis to Chanel Graphite at the moment (hoping my bottle will turn up somewhere, though I feel like I've turned my house upside-down looking for it), but I can compare Just Spotted the Lizard to Péridot:

Comparison between OPI Just Spotted the Lizard and Chanel PéridotLeft to right (pinkie to index):OPI Just Spotted The Lizard (three coats)Chanel Péridot (three coats)OPI Just Spotted The Lizard (three coats)Chanel Péridot (three coats)

Exact match. I can't tell a difference at all. The OPI seemed more green in the bottle, but it was just an illusion due to the rounded bottle shape. The OPI's formula is a little smoother and more opaque, but that's the only difference I could discern.

The formula on all the polishes was excellent. I didn't have a single problem with any of the shades. The texture was neither thick nor thin, just a nice, smooth, flowing-but-not-runny, in-between texture. No running or pooling, no ridges, no bubbles, nothing. All shades except My Boyfriend Scales Walls were opaque in two coats, but I did three coats of all anyway. Very fast dry time.

Overall, I'm kinda disappointed by this collection. I think it's awesome that they've finally released a collection for geeky polish-lovers like me, but I think the color selection is.... bizarre. Random. It doesn't feel like comic books or Spiderman at all. Okay, I see Lizard green and spiderweb white/grey, but to me, those are the most Spiderman-ish colors in here. Normally I'd not ask for another red, but come on... It's Spiderman! A Spiderman collection with no red! Plus, two Chanel dupes in one collection. I'm all for more affordable Chanel dupes, but really wish they had saved them for another collection and included two superhero/villain themed colors instead. How about a radioactive glow-in-the-dark shade? No? And why does that frosty pink even exist? At least the formula was great.

These definitely aren't as exciting as I thought they would be when I first saw the press release. They're still pretty colors and yay for cheaper Chanel dupes but I totally agree that they should have included something that really encompassed Spiderman.

Yay you did swatches.. I agree totally - how random are the colours? I totally dont get the coral or the white.. Number One Nemesis & Just Spotted the Lizard & Into the Night seem on cue.. but the rest???? I wanted a "Goblin" shade :( bogey green glitter?? please opi please? kind of half disappointed too will definitely be getting Number One Nemesis, Into the Night & Just Spotted the Lizard.. will someone put the shatters to rest.. jheez.

You're right about Number One Nemesis and Chanel's Graphite. I just purchased Graphite recently. OPI's Number One Nemesis is very similar, but has more of a green hue and that tiny bit of blue. Chanel's Graphite doesn't have that.

This collection is totally random! I think it's awesome that it's a comic book (movie) themed collection, but yikes... yeah, the colors are all over! The only ones of these that I'm interested in are the orange, the blue and the white mainly because I already own Peridot and Graphite. A frosty pink/coral? BLECH!

My Boyfriend Scales Walls and Just Spotted the Lizard are getting added to my collection ASAP. Like you said, though, why does that pink frost exist?!?!?! That's something my grandmother would have worn in the 80s.

My Boyfriend Scales Walls and Just Spotted the Lizard are getting added to my collection ASAP. Like you said, though, why does that pink frost exist?!?!?! That's something my grandmother would have worn in the 80s.

I wasn't crazy about this collection either. Especially after all the great polishes in the China Glaze Capitol Colours collection, to have only one, maybe two polishes that I would even consider buying in this movie themed collection from OPI was very disappointing.

Oooh, I'm digging Into the Night and Number One Nemesis. I don't usually like frosts, but I find that blue gorgeous and glowy! I also really like the color of the shatter one, but I don't care for shatter polishes. I'd love that color as a non-shatter/crackle. I agree with you on the red thing - Spiderman and no red?? Weird!

Finally, swatches of this! I have Peridot but I wear it sparingly because of how pricey it was...granted, I got it as a gift but still. I want JSTL so I can do everything I wanted to do with Peridot with it...marbling, stamping.

Also, I agree that this was the ONE time that OPI could have and should have gotten away with another red...and failed. I mean, it's Spiderman... welp, I'm still looking forward to 3 of these shades. Thanks for the swatches! :D

Wow. What an underwhelming collection. Having seen the DL Swagga Like Us, even Just Spotted a Lizard is blah. Peridot dupes are coming out of the walls! The only color worth looking at, for me, was the shatter but I'm kind of shattered out. Color choices all over the place and no red for Spiderman? Not even a dirty red to mimic Mary Jane's hair?! I would say that's appalling but I'm feeling too apathetic about the collection. As always, thank you for your beautiful swatches Scrangie! ^_^

Thanks for the excellent swatches, as always! :) I agree the color selection could have been much more unique. If there's any opportunity to go over the top, it would be a superhero-themed collection, right? There are a few nice shades in here--I'll probably pick up Just Spotted the Lizard and Number One Nemesis--but they don't really seem cohesive as a collection.

Well this is interesting.I thought that I would just completely ignore this collection because it looked lame and uncreative and didn't make any sense in context with the inspiration, but maybe I won't ignore it after all. I actually like and will be getting Call me Gwen-ever, Just Spotted the Lizard, Number One Nemesis and the Green Shatter. Well played, OPI. Well played. *slowly strokes mustache*

This comes from a non-shatter fan so perhaps biased but that shatter looks terrible with almost the whole collection. It's alright with Into the Night. At least with the Nicki Minaj collex Super Bass Shatter seemed to flatter some of them.

I do like Just Spotted the Lizard and My Boyfriend Scales Walls though.

Your swatches are always the ones that set my final decisions for which polishes i will purchase from a collection. I was wondering about the peridot connection. Now I know there is a dupe i have access to. Also going for boyfriend scales walls and # 1 nemesis.Do not like crackle but Shatter the Scales does tempt. Would try it with a grey purple or brown base. Thanks for your amazing swatches.

Dear Opi: please go visit some beauty supply stores and you'll see all crackles/shatters in the clearance bin... Really another shatter? And what about that frosty pink aka "frosty granny"? i'm so dissappointed! Maybe it's too much to say that I hate this collection, but I'm not going to bauy any. I saw Ommorphia did a comparison with Graphite, and it's almost an exact dupe. I understand companies doing dupes, but I'd love to see OPI setting trends instead of coping other brands... And two in the same collection?Such a great opportunity to make an awesome collection! Thanks for the swatches!!

I'm not a die-hard nail polish fan (gasp!), but your manicures always slay me. I think you have the most beautiful nails ever! Thanks for sharing all these nail looks with us. They must take you a long time to do, no?

I'm so over crackle, and this dark green is icky-looking. I'll pass. Will probably pick up the mini-set. Most of the colors are too frosty and show the brushstrokes too much for me, and I can't BELIEVE they didn't do a bright red for Spiderman!

It just seems like there's no cohesion with this collection. And I get that there never really is with nail polish collections, really. They just slap a bunch of cute titles on a pre-conceived collection and release it. I just wish they'd do something more. There's such a strong thematic look they had to work with, and they totally blew it. Like, "Your Web or Mine" should have been a red jelly with silver bar glitter, that really fine kind that looks like iron filaments (like the bar glitter in ChG's Blonde Bombshell). And I don't really get where they got the orangey-coral colour from "Call Me Gwen-ever." I always associate Gwen Stacey with a powder blue colour, because that's the colour of the hardcover version of Jeph Loeb's "Spider-Man: Blue", which is basically a love letter to Gwen.

This is how things always go with collections, but when they screw up the geeky stuff, I feel like they're stepping on my territory, and it really disappoints me. :/

I feel the same way about this collection, and judging by the comments, most people do too. When I first saw it, all I though was that at least I don't have to spend any money on the latest OPI collection. I think they'll really understand when sales don't go quite as they expect, save for maybe the Chanel dupes. They can definitely take a lesson from China Glaze, whose Hunger Games collection was a total slam dunk.

Yes, certainly have been a ton of want-a-bees tried since P came out in it's LTD release. I am glad to hear that 'Lizard' is finally a true dupe & that it has one of the good formulas that we all know OPI CAN produce. I never was a fan of the Chanel Peridot formula - but then I am not a Chanel polish fan for a lot of reasons - namely the $$$ now and the hype behind this or these shades released that pulls me in at times. They never are my favs once I get them in hand! I think mostly because I have to mail order vs. see/play with a counter one first. I should find out if Nordstrom takes them back via mail returns like they do everything else?

Personally I think that the rubbery finish of the Illamasqua polishes from their Theatre of the Nameless collection would've fitted the Spiderman theme like skintight red spandex – perhaps with a blue shatter to put on top of the red? I usually hate shatters, but it would work well for a Spidey look.

Just some ideas from the top of my head (how hard can it be, OPI?):

1. A bright red with the Illamasqua rubber finish2. A deep blue Shatter to go on top no. 1 (or a regular polish) with the same finish as the red3. A dramatic black polish for Venom (or perhaps a black with a scattered blue holo effect)4. A glittery green for the Green Goblin5. A coppery red/deep red duochrome for MJ Watson (who's a redhed)6. A red flakepolish in a clear base to use on top of 1, 2 (if not a shatter), 3 (if black the new combination would fit Vulture, another villain) or 5.7. A very light grey scattered or linear holo to mimic the look of Spiderman's webs

Those are nice ideas, but Venom, the Green Goblin, and Mary-Jane aren't in the new movie these polishes are promoting. The Lizard and Gwen Stacy are so you know, fantasy polish ideas would make a lot more sense within the confines of the new Amazing Spider-Man movie this collection is actually promoting...

Those are nice ideas, but Venom, the Green Goblin, and Mary-Jane aren't in the new Amazing Spider-Man movie this collection is promoting. Fantasy ideas closer to the theme than this collection are fun, but it's a bit out there to want characters that aren't even in the film! For all that this collection misses, Gwen Stacy and The Lizard are at least the in it!

Personally I think that the rubbery finish of the Illamasqua polishes from their Theatre of the Nameless collection would've fitted the Spiderman theme like skintight red spandex – perhaps with a blue shatter to put on top of the red? I usually hate shatters, but it would work well for a Spidey look.

Just some ideas from the top of my head (how hard can it be, OPI?):

1. A bright red with the Illamasqua rubber finish.2. A deep blue Shatter to go on top no. 1 (or a regular polish) with the same finish as the red.3. A dramatic black polish for Venom (or perhaps a black with a scattered blue holo effect).4. A glittery green for the Green Goblin.5. A coppery red/deep red duochrome for MJ Watson (who's a redhed).6. A red flakepolish with a clear base to use on top of 1, 2 (if not a shatter), 3 (if black the new combination would fit Vulture, another villain) or 5.7. A very light grey scattered or linear holo to mimic the look of Spiderman's webs.

I'm so glad another geeky polish lover feels like I do about this collection. Ever since the press release I've been saying "Where's the red? It's Spider-man, shouldn't there be a red?". I think they really could've done something great here with a variety of comic/movie inspired colors. I mean, I know The Lizard is this movie's villain but 3 colors inspired by him is too much. And pink? What? I may buy one or 2 of these shades but the lifelong Spider-man comic book reader in me wishes I loved them all.

Yes, yes and YES! The second I saw the press release I thought 'No red? And WHY is there a pink in there?!'. I'll be picking up Just Spotted the Lizard because I don't have a Peridot dupe yet and it's been on my wish list, but beyond that... *maybe* Number One Nemesis. It's just so sad that this collection COULD have been amazing... it's Spiderman! But instead it's mostly a let down. Thanks for the great swatches!

Ahhh yes im soo happy you have these up! When i found out about this collection i was estatic, I dont care for the rest of the colors but when i saw that Chanel dupe I knew i had to keep my eyes open for this collection. So im definitely getting the lizard and maybe nemesis. There have been alot of companies coming out with a chanel dupe but ill finally be able to get this in salons or ulta. No ordering for me!

PS. anyone really into seeing the new spiderman movie? I might then again i prefer Tobie Miguire. He did great in orginal movie so i dont see a for another spiderman movie...

Okay now that I've calm down from my drooling nail polish geek freak out, I'm noticing the actually collection. I have to agree with most of the comments, this collection isn't really spiderman at all- why is there an orange, pink and white? The pink isnt that bad but then again its not that great. As for the white and orange..no. just no. You can get those simple colors anywere from any collection.

Me too - cannot believe they added another Shatter to the OPI collections. That is so done. Only thing I can see if they could not resist it making the shades look more like lizard skin with the Shatter.

I know I am not the first to say this but why that horrible peach frost? Why yet another Shatter? We are done with all that are we not? (however I do see how it kind of fits into this collection - just won't see me buying it). The blue here we have seen before and there are tons of better ones than this out there now with that blue WOW factor. The orange - come on, it's been done too. Some might like the Peridot kind of dupe (but I have Peridot and won't buy this OPI one). And like you and others have said...no red here? That's like doing a Wonder Woman collection and not having a red in it! Really disappointed with this collection and probably won't buy a one of them which is RARE for me in an OPI collection.

I REALLY like Number One Nemesis, Call Me Gwen, My Boyfriend Scales Walls and the shatter, but overall I feel like I wouldn't have the patience to try it out. I'd like to see it as a regular color, though and I think I felt that way about the Super Bass shatter as well (but I think that that was mostly due to my shameful love of the song). I'm a little iffy on the Gwen color.

I was really excited to hear they were doing a superhero collection and I think the blue is kind of faithful to his suit, but I don't like the look of it on the nail. And like everyone else is wondering, WHERE IS THE RED?? That seems impossible. Hopefully I can pick up the few that I do enjoy though!

WOW! It's not been out that long and already "Lizard" is getting impossible to find. I wonder if OPI will make a new batch and keep this going like they did with the Katy Perry collection in Jan 11 when that sold out in ~24 hrs & they could not fill all the vendor orders that were originally promised I was told. That really sort of blew the rarity of that collection apart. No one can get rid of it all - esp the horrible Black Shatter! Seems the only one that still has interest is Teen Age Dreams (the pink one). Just glad I got my bottle of Not Like In the Movies out of the first batch before they changed (er goofed) & came up with a totally different shade for that one in later runs.

I was kinda disappointed in the collection too, but when I went to pick up some OPI polishes yesterday, I looked at the collection in person. I wanted the shatter one but they didn't have it in stock. I got Number One Nemesis and I can't wait to wear it in the fall!

I have found reasoning behind the color selection! The Amazing Spider-Man used to be Amazing (Adult) Fantasy comic book where Spiderman first appeared and he wore a paper bag over his head and ORANGE pants. The series then continued as the Amazing Spider-Man. The pink I'm guessing is because Gwen was Peter's first love. Remember this movie is going back to the High School Days it's not Spiderman 4.

I was not very impressed by this collection when I first saw it. I was looking forward to its release before I saw it. OMG, it's THE AMAZING SPIDERMAN collection. I'm in my 40's and I squealed. I have so many similar colors with similar finishes to the collection. Just Spotted the Lizard reminded me of OPI's At Your Quebec & Call. I decided to buy it anyway after seeing your swatches. The wearability is amazing. I cooked,cleaned, and soaked my hands in a bleach/water solution. I did not use a base coat nor a top coat. I did not get any chips and the shine was still very visible. JSTL also looks very elegant with a layer of OPI's Spark de Triomphe on top.

"Why does that frosty pink shade even exist?" hahahahaha I love it. I think I liked the rest of the collection more than you did, but I agree with you about that color. And also about the red! I would have bought a Spiderman Red polish just for the name.